U.S. stocks finished lower Wednesday, as investors are looking for Congress to extend the Bush-era tax cuts. The U.S. Senate approved the controversial $858 billion tax package Wednesday, despite a series of objections from both parties. The measure, which passed 81 to 19, now advances to the House of Representatives. In U.S. economic news, government data showed that the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.1 percent month over month in November, slightly less than the 0.2 percent rise economists were expecting. Meanwhile, the core CPI-excluding food and energy-increased 0.1 percent in November. The U.S. dollar gained against the euro and the yen. Light sweet crude oil for January delivery gained 34 cents to $88.62 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gold futures fell $18.10 to $1,386.20 an ounce. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 19.07, or 0.2 percent, to 11,457.47. The broader Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 6.36, or 0.5 percent, to 1,235.23. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell 10.50, or 0.4 percent, to 2,617.22.
